Help please!

[jammin261]

Hi I have had borderline hypo for two years, recently it went lower and took thyroxine 25mg this made symptoms much worse, extreme fatigue, confusion, body aching, joints hurting, no libido, Shortness of breath, palpitations! Stopped taking it and just had bloods taken again. Just don’t know if it’s normal for my RBC, WBC and neutrophil to be so low and my b12 to be so high! GP won’t test T3, and says all is fine but I’m feeling worse than ever! Any help advice would so great fully appreciated.

Serum b12- 753 ng/l. Range 191-663ng/l

Haven’t been taking supplements for b12

Many thanks

Ben

[jammin261]

Serum b12 753 ng/l Range 191-663ng/l

I haven’t been taking any supplements for b12!

[Mary-intussuception]

Do you have any Thyroid function blood tests to share, any nutrients levels?

If printing please include full information including date/s of tests and normal ranges in brackets.

I cannot see, on these results, anything regarding your Thyroid function, B12 levels or any other nutrients.

Don't know what you mean by "borderline Hypo" ?? You are either Hypothyroid or you're not. If you have been prescribed Levothyroxine, then I would assume you have an Underactive Thyroid gland ie Hypothyroidism.

Do you know if you've ever had Thyroid Antibodies tested? Hashimoto's Autoimmune Thyroiditis is the cause of Hypothyroidism in most people.

With Hashimoto's bloods can fluctuate. This may explain your 'borderline' results on an occassion, prior to medication. This happened to me, 18 months after "Hypo" results were overlooked and not acted upon.

The whole point of our treatment is for us to have enough of the (synthetic) hormone that we're not producing for us to become well. This will be shown by our symptoms improving, and our follow up bloods results now coming well within range. And our TSH being brought low. This is necessary, also, to protect the Pituitary Gland from overworking by producing lots of TSH.

So good results wouldn't be a reason to reduce Levothyroxine.

Do you know what your last TSH result was and what your target therapeutic level of TSH is?

My Endo said mine is maximum of 2, but I have learned on this site of the opinion that , ideally, it should be 1.

You could take a list of your symptoms to your GP and ask for the following tests : (you might get some if not all)

Thyroid Antibodies - TPO and Tg

FreeT3 and FreeT4

T4 , T3 and TSH

Nutrients levels of:

Vitamin D

B12

Folate and

Ferritin

If you Google symptoms of deficiencies of each of these nutrients, add any you have to your list for GP.

Also check your temperature first thing in the morning before food & drink. If it's lower than 36.5 make a note and add to your list.

I don't really understand why you dropped your dose to 25mcg of Levothyroxine ?? 50mcg is the starter dose. Usually that increases not decreases.

Did your doctor tell you to reduce? If not, then I would get back on the 50mcg.

Hope this helps.

[jammin261]

Thanks for your reply,

As of 5/12/17

Tsh 5.09 range (0.27-4.2 mu/l)

Free t4 11.2 range (12-22pmol/L)

Thyroid peroxidase ab conc 8 range (0-34iu/ml)

Serum b12 753 range (191-663ng/l)

Serum ferritin 192 range (30-400ug/l)

They started me on 25 mg thyroxine as i was only slightly under active! But it made me very ill and blood pressure went very high!

Also asked for vitamin d on last tests but they didn’t take it!

Many thanks

Ben

[Clutter in reply to jammin261]

Jammin261,

FT4 is below range which is why TSH is high. You NEED Levothyroxine replacement.

There are 3 makes of 25mcg Levothyroxine in the UK. Ask your pharmacist to trial you on one of the others. Wockhardt 25mcg has fewer fillers than Mercury Pharma and Teva so it may be worth requesting that make. You could halve the tablet to 12.5mcg for a week or two before increasing to 25mcg. That can be more tolerable to people sensitive to Levothyroxine.

The goal of Levothyroxine is to restore the patient to euthyroid status. For most patients that will be when TSH is 0.3 - 1.0 with FT4 in the upper range. FT4 needs to be in the upper range in order that sufficient T3 is converted. Read Treatment Options in thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

For maximum absorption Levothyroxine should be taken with water 1 hour before, or 2 hours after, food and drink, 2 hours away from other medication and supplements, and 4 hours away from calcium, iron, vitamin D supplements, magnesium and oestrogen.

It takes 7-10 days for Levothyroxine to be absorbed before it starts working and it will take up to six weeks to feel the full impact of the dose. Symptoms may lag behind good biochemistry by several months.

You should have a follow up thyroid test 6-8 weeks after starting Levothyroxine. Arrange an early morning and fasting (water only) blood draw when TSH is highest, and take Levothyroxine after your blood draw.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

Thyroid peroxidase (TPO) antibodies are negative for autoimmune thyroiditis (Hashimoto's) but some people are negative to TPO and positive to thyroglobulin (TgAb) antibodies so Hashimoto's isn't conclusively ruled out.

B12 and ferritin are optimal.

Neutrophils may be low after fighting an infection or virus. Some people have naturally low neutrophils.

[marigold22]

Back in the early 1980's I was diagnosed hypothyroid with a TSH of 75 and given prescription for Levo/thyroxine (T4). I honestly felt far worse on T4 than I did before taking it. I continued for 14 years on that medication and went down and down hill. Only in 2017 did I do a private DIO2 gene test and discovered that my body can't convert T4 into the usable thyroid hormone T3. That may be the case for you.